Michelle and Eric Asalone learned the hard way one of the most basic rules for happy airline travel: Don’t put anything you can’t afford to lose in checked baggage.
When the young couple flew on US Airways 2 1/2 years ago from Philadelphia to St. Thomas to take part in a friend’s wedding, their bags didn’t arrive for four days–the day after the ceremony. They wore to the wedding the finest the local Kmart had to offer.
“Every time I travel nowadays, I carry on, or at least I take a carry-on bag with just the essentials,” Michelle said.
“Have good packing habits” is one of numerous tips that experienced travelers have for those who fly only occasionally. Among the reasons to make travel plans carefully is the cost: Families making holiday trips will spend an estimated $1,267 this year, according to an American Express Travel survey conducted in October.
Here is other advice to help make that holiday airline trip less stressful.
– Travel early in the day. The earlier a flight operates, the better the chance it will be on time. A few delays at a major hub airport can push back arrivals and departures across an airline’s system. The on-time performance of airports and major carriers are reported by the U.S. Bureau of Transportation at www.bts.gov.
– Pack lightly. Besides using a carry-on bag for essentials, try checking as few bags as possible. You won’t have to wait for them at the end of the flight. Check your airline’s policies on Web sites or by phone.
– Plan where to sit. Did you know that before reserving seats, you can look at seat guru.com, which has layouts of airplane cabins of U.S. and major foreign carriers. The site has information on how much legroom each airline’s planes have, and which seats to avoid because they are close to restrooms or galleys or do not recline.
– Bring money for food. Most airlines do not serve free food in coach other than packaged snacks, except on flights longer than three or four hours.
– Use time for shopping. Many airports are good places to buy travel essentials, apparel, gifts, books and packaged food from national and local retailers. Retailers are required to offer the same prices at the airport that they do at off-airport locations.
– Go with the flow. Be prepared for long security lines, crowded flights, delays or cancellations, and lost bags (although airlines misplace an average of only five or six bags per 1,000 passengers). If something does go wrong, be patient. After all, you are on vacation.
